1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to simulators and, more particularly, to a simulator adapted to include atmospheric scintillation in its simulation.
2. Prior Art
U.S. Pat. No. 4,446,363 discloses an optical tracking system that produces a simulation of a target and background information. The target is simulated by a mechanical iris, and the background by an image stencil which is perforated by the desired imagery for the background. U.S. Pat. No. 4,996,437 discloses an optical clutter scene simulator to simulate atmospheric clutter produced by a nuclear event. The system includes a projector lens, a source display slide, a scene plane which is actually out of focus with the true focal plane, and a control screen which may be a circular aperture or a variable opacity screen. U.S. Pat. No. 4,173,777 discloses an optical system for simulating the plume produced by a jet aircraft or a missile. The system includes a rotating shutter, a variable power radiation source, a filter to pass only radiation of a plume, a variable iris, and a detector. The various simulations of a plume are described in the abstract. U.S. Pat. No. 5,079,431 discloses a system for testing an infrared sensor by providing a scenario simulator. A target plate for electron beams from guns emits infrared radiation from different locations thereon to simulate an atmospheric scene to be monitored. A collimator and image former project an image onto the sensor. U.S. Pat. No. 3,857,042 discloses a target simulator wherein a moving target is simulated by sequencing the emission of an array of diodes in a controlled manner. U.S. Pat. No. 3,283,148 discloses a calibrator for an infrared system which utilizes a plate with different shaped openings to identify different temperatures in an object field.